Green Deal MSE Guide Discussion

Gloucester_Lad

Blanik said
"We have a 3yo condensing boiler, with trv on all radiators and programmable room stat - but it still suggested I would save £200 ( which is 40% of my gas bill ) by fitting a new boiler! and £20 by changing the controls"

Well, I'm not surprised you were unimpressed by the assessment. I'm an experienced EPC assessor (not a GDAdvisor) and clearly your GDA got it badly wrong. He (or she) failed to correctly identify your heating and heating control system making the assessment a complete nonsense.

The reason could be put down to the GDA simply not being very good or it could be that the motive was to sell you a new heating system and collect commission on that sale.

Remember all GDA's are newly qualified. Some will be experienced EPC assessors, but many will be ex sales people looking to benefit from this new sales opportunity, and who see qualifying as a GDA just a necessary step.

This is why I, as an existing EPC assessor who simply provides EPC's and sells nothing, have no plans to qualify as a GDA. I prefer to remain independent and not forced to double as a sales person.

This issue is perhaps towards the top of my list of concerns about the Green Deal. I believe that without total independence, and that means no sales commission or no sale no fee arrangement, the whole scheme is open to mis-selling potential and no amount of checks and measures can really prevent this.

Edit:
Been advised you did an online assessment rather than acually have a GDA around.
However the concern I express is still valid and incorrect assessments by novice advisors and/or advisor/sales people trying to push sales is still very real.

baldchris

Is it even worth booking an assessor, as we are renovating an old, solid stone wall home. It doesn't have any heating at all at the minute (let alone a full set of windows!).
So, if the loan depends upon the savings you make on your heating, then as I'm only paying a notional £10 month for gas, I can't see how I can save on that - so is it even worth calling an assessor?
I want to install internal solid wall insulation and double glazing, and our funds have almost run dry, so this deal would suit me if I am eligible.

Thanks for any advice...

Gloucester_Lad

TheBag wrote: »

Hi

We had our Green Deal Assessment done by British Gas last week but I'm very disappointed with the outcome of the Assessment.

We live in a chalet style semi with flat roofed dormer windows to the front & rear. The rooms upstairs with Dormer window are very cold in winter. The dormers are also very leaky & have no insulation to the vertical walls, sloping ceilings or flat roofs that I was hoping to get corrected with the Green Deal.

The Assessor checked all the property & inputted all the details into the laptop. The outcome was our property was given a Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) that said our property is fairly green (which isn't true). It also didn't recommend any improvements except for Solar Panels & Underfloor Insulation of which we can't have either due to roof size & solid floor.

The Assessor pointed out that the Government software on the laptop didn't have a facility for dormer windows & he couldn't input them as a rooms in a roof (which our house is really) or flat roofs (as that facility is for flat roofed extensions).

As I said at the start I'm very disappointed in the Green Deal as I thought it was going to benefit houses that were difficult to insulate but it clearly isn't. It seems to me if you've already got double glazing, newish boiler, loft insulation, cavity wall insulation, & seals on the doors it won't recommend any improvements really.

The definition of a "room in roof" is the height of the common wall. If the vertical height of the same outside wall in say the lounge is less than 1.8m in say a bedroom above you're living in a bungalow with a "room in the roof". If more than 1.8m you're living in a house. The software calculations differ and therefore so will the final result.

Not surprised you were unimpressed. Sounds like either a not very good newly qualified assessor or a newly qualified ex sales person looking to perhaps make a bit of commission on an insulation sale, and by the sounds of it failing there too.

huggermugger

The article makes no mention of the position of those in shared ownership properties. From my own research it would appear that the consent of the landlord (usually a housing association) will not be needed unless the individual lease states that consent is required for the particular improvement. Typically, consent is needed for external/structural alterations eg double glazing and external cladding but not for internal work such as boilers etc.

However, am still unclear about how they will feel about the debt which afaik although not secured on the house does run with it and therefore would in a sense be "taken on" by any new lessee/owner. Or maybe I'm not understanding it correctly.

kitekat

Fordyce wrote: »

I live in a house built in 1906, with solid walls. Quite large house, 5 bedrooms, on 3 floors. Solidly built. We have had internal insulation in two rooms, which was not a simple job. The house is not entirely straight, having been built back then, and settled over time. Getting the insulation straight, sorting out corners and windows, replacing skirting board, picture rails, curtain rails, radiators etc took a lot of time, care and expertise. Done by our local builder, whom I trust. The job took ages to get all the details right, and cost a lot. I would be very dubious indeed to get in some unknown firm of builders, on a fixed price - with no commitment to me or to the quality of the work. This internal insulation is complex stuff. To get a perfect finish is painstaking.

Hi we have been considering getting this done,would you say it makes the room warmer and is it very expensive.

jay.driscoll

Good Afternoon,

Has anyone looked at booking an assessment? If so the cost seems quite high. Has anyone come across any providers offering free no catch assessments?

Regards

Jay

Fordyce

kitekat wrote: »

Hi we have been considering getting this done,would you say it makes the room warmer and is it very expensive.

Yes, it has definitely made a huge difference. We had the insulating board put in - a medium quality - about 1.7cm or so thick, with part foam backing and part plaster board. Had to hack all plaster off back to the brick. Large job. Difficult when corners etc not straight. Difficult putting radiators back, if slight difference in thickness of wall, and limited amount of pipe (so need plumbing expertise) etc etc. But definitely makes a difference. But we paid quite a lot of it - perhaps £2000 per room or so, for all the work - I cannot remember the figure. Made the rooms much more comfortable, and now most of the heat stays in. We also had the ceiling of a bay window insulated with the same stuff (flat roof bay with little space for insulation) and that also helped hugely. Well worth doing, but perhaps an expensive measure.

Peter_Draper

Bear in mind the interest rates. There are also other boiler scrappage schemes that might benefit you - old boiler needs to be G rated I think to benefit from this.

Don't do anything with insulation on the walls though - can cause no end of damage and will also not provide the savings projected by the software used for Green Deal assessments.

kitekat

Fordyce wrote: »

Yes, it has definitely made a huge difference. We had the insulating board put in - a medium quality - about 1.7cm or so thick, with part foam backing and part plaster board. Had to hack all plaster off back to the brick. Large job. Difficult when corners etc not straight. Difficult putting radiators back, if slight difference in thickness of wall, and limited amount of pipe (so need plumbing expertise) etc etc. But definitely makes a difference. But we paid quite a lot of it - perhaps £2000 per room or so, for all the work - I cannot remember the figure. Made the rooms much more comfortable, and now most of the heat stays in. We also had the ceiling of a bay window insulated with the same stuff (flat roof bay with little space for insulation) and that also helped hugely. Well worth doing, but perhaps an expensive measure.

Hi why did you have to take it back to the brick,i thought the insulation could have been adhered to the plastered wall.

compact101

Sorry if this has been answered (1 large thread is a little strange for a topic that would generate so many differing questions).
I'm interested in the scheme mainly for the cashback.

1) I've started work on the house, would this invalidate things i.e. old boiler in basement gone, but new boiler not bought or installed
2) Do you have to use their workmen i.e. plumbers or can you do it yourself
3) If you have just bought the property so have no bills can you still do an assesment?
i.e. no insulation, single glazing, 20yr old boiler all need to be upgraded.

Ideally I would like an independent assessment
Use independent workmen
Pay for all the work upfront
Claim the cashback.

I'm waiting for a call back from an assessor, but in lieu of this, I'd be interested to hear from people with knowledge of the system.

Thanks